5 Tips to help you handle the time change.

Raise your hand if you’ve been personally victimized by Daylight Saving Time. 🙋‍♀️🙋🏻‍♀️🙋🏾‍♂️🙋🙋🏽🙋‍♂️

This outdated practice originated in the early 1900s, and though there have been plenty of efforts to do away with it, it is still. here. Lingering like a guest who can’t understand the most basic of social cues. Like a salsa stain on a white dress. Like your child sticking his fingers under the bathroom door when you’re trying to escape FOR JUST ONE MINUTE. Yeah, you get it.

Sure, the extra hour of sunshine is lovely, but losing a precious hour of sleep is simply not an even trade, if you ask us.

Short of packing up and moving to a state that doesn’t observe the time change, there are things we can do to help our internal clock better adjust to the spring time change. As sleep aficionados (and anti-spring forwarders), here are a few tips to get you through this time change season more comfortably! 

     1. Establish Consistent Bed and Rise Times

If you already have consistent bed and waking times, you’re ahead of the curve! 

Adults should try to get at least seven hours of sleep the days before and after the time change, and for kids, take a look at these recommendations by age.

Think back to previous time changes and if it’s been especially hard on you (or your kids), another way to approach it is to gradually bump up your bedtime up 15 or so minutes each night, two- to three days before Daylight Saving Time. 

One other thing – and you’re not going to love this – but resist the urge to sleep in an hour the Sunday after the time change. This will only impede you getting into that consistent routine. If you’re parents, this won’t apply to you since your kids WILL find you…

     2. Need a Nudge?

Speaking of rising and shining on time, if you need some help reaching bright-eyed-bushy-tailed status the morning after the time change, our Energy Supplement is not only a tasty incentive to get out of bed (dark chocolate before lunch, yesss!), but it also packs 20mg of caffeine, green tea and a B-vitamin mix in every piece. Because these give a smooth and lasting boost, you can have these in addition to your morning joe, in place of it (four pieces = 1 cup of coffee) or when that all-too-familiar afternoon slump hits.

     3. Get into a Groove

Bedtime routines are not just for kids! Adults, too, can incorporate a calming routine to help your body know bedtime is imminent. 

Alcohol, exercising too close to bedtime and using electronics (phones, TVs, computers) can all be sleep disruptors. Try cutting back on those leading up to the time change (and after!) and see how you feel. 

Beyond adjusting some of those habits, give yourself an hour or so to wind down before bed. Some of our favorite calming activities are reading before bed, taking a warm shower and meditating. 

     4. Eat Chocolate

No, you didn’t misread that! Here’s your permission to have your chocolate and sleep better, too – starting tonight! 

 If you’ve had trouble sleeping, our Good Day Chocolate Sleep supplement can be the answer. We create these sweet sleep treats for adults and kids alike, with varying amounts of melatonin. And if you’re in the market for a non-melatonin sleep aid for your kiddos, we now have a valerian root supplement that works like a charm to calm their minds and bodies and help them doze off gently.

As an added perk, you *will* become the favorite parent if you give your kids these natural and safe sleep supplements as part of your bedtime routine. 

     5. Get Outside! 

Getting exposure to sunlight during the day helps regulate your internal clock. So the Sunday after the time change, get outside and let the sun work its magic (don’t forget the SPF, of course!). 

Bonus points if you exercise outside, too, since being physically active can promote better sleep (as long as it isn’t too close to bedtime).

It can take about a week for your body to fully adjust to the time change, but giving these tips a try before, during and after the time change can help shorten that adjustment period. And then, you’ll think of it less like you’re losing an hour of sleep, and more like you’re an hour closer to eating that delicious breakfast sandwich. 

We love hearing from you. What tips make “springing forward” less difficult for you? Tell us in the comments!